In perhaps his “best game as a King”, Quinton Byfield showing what he can bring early in the season

“Maybe his best game as a King.”

High praise from Todd McLellan last night about 55 in black and white.

Quinton Byfield was authoritative. He was impactful. He imposed himself on the game instead of letting the game come to him. We saw bits and pieces of it last year, sure, but it was less controlled. Byfield was a monster on the forecheck last season, adding a new dimension to the team’s first line.

What was lacking at times, though, was the control and the polish. Last night, we saw that in his game, not only taking the initiative on the forecheck, but having the composure to make a play coming out of it. The results were noticed by McLellan.

“I thought he was all over the ice,” McLellan added after last night’s game. “He looked confident he made great plays not only offensively but defensively. Nice to see him score a goal for all the hard work he did, but I thought he had a really strong night and something to build on as he goes forward.”

The impact he made on the game goes beyond the contribution on the scoresheet, but it was nice to see the impact measured on the scoresheet as well.

Through one game, Byfield has already opened his goalscoring account for the 2023-24 season. His first NHL goal last season came in January, during his 16th NHL game of the season.

I think we can all look at last night’s goal and agree that it wasn’t exactly a candidate for ESPN’s Top 10 plays of the night. The setup itself was excellent, as Byfield turned on the jets and raced onto a Mighty Ducks 2 style pass from Anze Kopitar. The anticipation and hustle though, from both Byfield and Adrian Kempe, was impressive in that moment, as they created a dangerous situation out of nothing.

The play was born off a faceoff that came with just 10.8 seconds left in the second period. It wasn’t a set play, one that the Kings have practiced during the weeks leading in. More of that Longest Yard, schoolyard bull……you know, kind of play.

“What I will say about that play is the flip is a valuable tool in today’s game,” McLellan said. “You can ask any goaltender, there’s nothing worse, it’s like a punt in football where you’re waiting for the ball to come in and everybody’s running at you. Kopi was smart enough to flip that puck on the goaltender and we just went. That’s up to them to have something put together and they did a really good job.”

Photo by Morgan Hancock/Getty Images

All that aside, though, I think we can also agree that goal would not have gone in for Byfield last year, however wonky it might have been. That’s just how things went for the Ontario native a season ago. Maybe he gets the primary assist and his pass finds Kempe for the slam-dunk at the back post. If it did, I could see the narrative from here.

Yeah, nice pass, but another game without a goal.

Sometimes, it just takes a bit of luck, a favorable bounce, to get things started. On that play, Byfield got one to go his way, but it’s also not surprising to see him put the puck in the net on a night when he carried a shooting mentality.

Byfield had six shot attempts in yesterday’s game, one shy of his season high from the 2022-23 season. In the first 99 games of his NHL career, Byfield had six-or-more shot attempts just six times. Only once has he hit seven. In the first game of the 2023-24 season, Byfield hit that mark with an impressive showing.

Byfield’s goalscoring totals were a pointed topic of discussion a season ago. You could point to high production totals in the assist column, or his impact on his line with Kopitar and Kempe, but nonetheless, the goals scored was an easy number to point at. Even if last night’s goal isn’t one that will go in for him every night, having a shooting mentality is replicateable. With a higher volume of shots and a clean bill of health – Byfield played the bulk of last season with two sprained wrists – the hope is we’ll see the production start to match the work being put in.

“I only had three goals last year, that’s definitely what everyone’s talking about, but you don’t realize what issues people are dealing with,” Byfield said. “I’m confident in my shot, I’ve worked on it this year in the summer, and my skating as well.”

Byfield said he isn’t a guy who sets numbers for himself to hit, but he admitted his production needs to increase this season.

He provided consistency and forechecking to a line that worked well together, even if his production wasn’t what you need from your LW1. Slotted in that position from Game 1 this time around, he’s focused on improving from a production standpoint, without sacrificing the things that he did last year. Above all else, we wants to play the right way and the points will follow.

“I wouldn’t say I have exact numbers, I’d like to obviously produce a lot more than I have, but I’m just trying to play the right way, honestly,” he said. “It’s always fun when the team wins, so that’s the main goal, but individually, I want to produce more than I have been.”

Regardless of how he’s setting his goals, everyone hopes that Byfield is scoring more goals. What Byfield, McLellan and the Kings management team can agree on is that it’s an important season for players like Byfield.

The Kings, organizationally, have invested in high-end talent. High-end talent requires high-end contracts. When you have fewer players taking up more room under the salary cap, it places more of an onus on getting production from players on entry-level contracts. With Byfield’s projected role, he’s at the top of that list for sure.

“It’s a big season for Quinton,” Kings General Manager said of Byfield. “I said this at the end of [last] year, but for us to get better, for us to be able to compete in the playoffs……young guys have to take steps. Quinton, Spence, Clarke, Kaliyev, Laferriere, they have to not just play, but perform. Quinton got into a role last year, he was really effective on a good line for us and we continued that throughout camp and into the season.”

Byfield himself is a restricted free agent at the end of this season and you’d have to imagine that his next contract has a wide range of outcomes.

Speaking with Blake earlier this week, he called it a good problem to have if Byfield is hitting the markers and milestones this season that would merit a contract that could make things more difficult with the salary cap. Byfield is one in a group of several younger players who have their entry-level contracts expiring at the end of this season and if he creates salary-cap problems, it’s because he’s producing at the level he’s capable of.

That’s a discussion for another day, though. For now, Byfield is just focusing on now and right now, the Kings are just looking for Quinton to be Quinton. More of the same from last night, and it’s a Quinton everyone will be impressed with.

Photo by Steph Chambers/Getty Images